VIVA's Two Albums Return To Streaming Two Decades After India's First Girl Group Debuted

The group formed in April 2002 after winning Channel V's Coke V Popstars, the Indian edition of the British talent-hunt format. Its original five members were Neha Bhasin, Anushka Manchanda, Pratichee Mohapatra, Mahua Kamat, and Seema Ramchandani, who left the group shortly after the debut album's release; the remaining four carried the band forward. VIVA's debut album sold close to 500,000 copies, and the group's first concert, held in April 2002, drew a crowd of over 50,000 people, an entry that made it into the Limca Book of Records as the first debut band in India to draw such a crowd. The album featured tracks including "Hum Naye Geet Sunaye," composed by Shankar-Ehsaan-Loy, along with "Jahan Ho Pyaar Ka Mausam" and "Jaago Zara."

The band released its second and final album, VIVA Reloaded, in 2003, before gradually going dormant as members pursued individual careers; sources differ on whether the group formally disbanded or simply faded out around 2005. Announcing the streaming release in May 2026, Anushka Manchanda said VIVA "represents a powerful moment in time that laid the foundation for us to be strong, independent women," while Neha Bhasin described the group as "India's first pop girl band," calling it "a feeling, a memory and an entire era" for a generation of listeners.